A Love Game
by Athrun's Nightmare
Summary: Ryoma never thought twice about the double meaning of the word before. What place does love have in the tennis court anyway except denote a score of zero? [Uploaded RevisedEdited Chapter 4]
1. Love 1, Ryoma 0

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Prince of Tennis.

**Author's Note:** I finally got a chance to sit down and revise/edit this chapter a bit. Expect the other chapters to be edited/revised slightly as well before any new ones come out. Also, feel free to review. I read all of them and keep them in mind especially when critique is provided.

A Love Game: Chapter 1 – Love 1, Ryoma 0

Ryoma Echizen wiped the sweat that dripped from his forehead as he replaced his match racket into his tennis bag.

It was now over.

Seigaku won the National Championship with everyone having a hand in it. With Tezuka at the helm once again, Seigaku was stronger than ever. Even though his return all but fueled up opponents more to play better, nothing could derail Seigaku from powering through in the finals to snatch victory. Kawamura had to give up his position as a Regular due to an injury during the run but it didn't affect him one bit. To him, he was still part of the team. His _Burning!_ energy and enthusiasm were utilized to incite and cheer the crowds as Seigaku fought hard against their opponents.

Almost to no one's surprise, the final match was against Rikkaidai. With Yukimura-san back as the captain, their confidence and strength soared to even greater heights, which made them even more of a challenge for Seigaku.

Unfortunately for them though, Seigaku had eight players who were as strong and confident, if not more, as they. Seigaku was not going to settle for anything less than the National Championship.

Ryoma paused and briefly recalled the matches played and labeled them as possibly the best played matches he's ever witnessed and have played in. His teammates were the best teammates anyone could have. They made each other strong, better, and more competitive.

And the end result spoke for itself. Seigaku's Tezuka over Rikkaidai's Yukimura, 7-6.

Ryoma sighed as he zipped his tennis bag closed. Now, it was over. There was still tennis to play for the rest of the school year, but the most exciting matches have come to pass.

And to him it wasn't all tennis. Playing the game expanded his horizons. From Tezuka-buchou, he learned so much more about shouldering responsibility and strength in teamwork. He met all kinds of people, made friends with many, made enemis with some, learned a few great things about life, and learned to accept disappointment when it came. And also, somehow, in the midst of it all, he managed to…find something else. Something else that someone his age shouldn't really even consider yet.

Ryoma frowned. What place does love have in the tennis court except denote the lack of a score?

How ironic. No one taught him about this.

If his father knew about this, he'd never let him live it down. Ryoma decided immediately that there was no way in hell he'd give away this secret to him. Nanjiroh Echizen tormented him enough as it is. If he ever learned that his son had fallen in love at such a young age, he would think up of a thousand more ways to make Ryoma's life miserable.

Ryoma would just have to overcome it. Falling in love, that is.

Somehow.

He turned around and looked over to where his teammates stood. He tried hard to avoid looking at the object of his affections but it was to no avail. His eyes fell on him anyway. "Che! How troublesome…"

Ryoma bowed his head slightly and tipped his hat downwards as he walked towards the team. They were clearly going to celebrate at Kawamura's tonight. He preferred to go home and soak in his bathtub but the rest of the Regulars would hear none of it. Since this was the last major tournament of the season, they needed to celebrate in style.

He sighed and finally relented. Though he wanted to have time to think to himself (preferably while soaking in the bathtub), he also knew that there was no way his sempais would leave him alone. He suspected that Momo-sempai would be more than happy to volunteer to drag him to Taka-san's sushi restaurant if necessary.

He'll just have to find some other time to think about his problem with 'love' and the complications and uncertainties that came with it. He was sure of one thing, however. He definitely needed to overcome love. Otherwise, he'd be one agitated freshman for the rest of school year.

--

"Oi, Chibi! Pass me some of that ikura sushi before Momo devours it, nya!" Kikumaru yelped as he reached across the table.

"Hai hai. Here," replied Ryoma as he skillfully swiped the targeted piece from Momoshiro's hand. Without thinking twice about it, he passed it on to Kikumaru sempai who devoured it promptly.

"Nani?!? Echizen!"

"Hnn…"

"Oi, Eiji! Don't use Echizen like that!" reprimanded Oishi.

"Demo, Oishi-kun! Momo stole my masago earlier!"

"Eiji!"

Ryoma breathed out a bit exasperatedly as he took in another bite of saba sushi in his mouth. As he chewed on it, he turned his head towards the table where his other sempais sat. Once again, automatically his gaze fell on _him_. Annoyed that he couldn't stop himself from looking, Ryoma abruptly turned his head the other direction and almost clonked heads with a still grumpy Momoshiro who had to settle for unagi sushi.

"Hora, Echizen! Watch out, will ya? I'm trying to eat here!" Momoshiro grunted.

"Sorry," replied Ryoma without regret. He reached for a tuna roll.

"Oi, Ochibi? Daijoubu desu ka?" Kikumaru asked with one eyebrow raised. "Nya, you've been unusually quiet, though you're quiet half the time anyway, but you are so so—"

"Eiji!" Oishi interrupted. "Gomen, Echizen! Don't mind Eiji. He's just still in cloud nine after our win today."

Ryoma brought the tuna roll to his mouth and avoided Kikumaru's curious gaze. "Hai, daijoubu. I'm just a bit tired."

"Of course he is! He played for over two hours against Sanada-kun again today! He showed that show-off invisible swing speed hitter how much of a better player than he his!" Horio boasted as he suddenly spoke out from nowhere.

"Horio-kun! We don't think that's something you should be bragging about!"

"Ah, mou!"

"Mada mada da ne," Ryoma mumbled as he stood up and gathered his bearings.

"Fushuuuu…You're leaving?" asked Kaidoh who had to move when Ryoma stood up.

"Hnn…betsuni…Going home. I'm tired and have homework to do."

"Wait-o Echizen! I've got more _Burning_ sushi for you!" Kawamura belted out. "Oh no! You can't go yet, Baby!"

"Nya! Oishi! Make Ochibi stay longer!"

"Tezuka-buchou!" Momoshiro called their captain's attention to try to convince the freshman to stay longer. "He can't leave yet!"

"Fushuuu…."

"Mamushi!"

"Nani!?"

"Make Echizen stay!"

"Fushuuu…Don't tell me what to do!"

"Hey you two, calm down…," said Oishi.

"Yaro…!!"

Ryoma managed to successfully dissuade other attempts to make him stay in the party even as his sempais Momoshiro and Kaidoh were about to start a fight. As he slipped his shoes on and grabbed his bag, a solemn voice called him.

"Echizen."

Ryoma paused and turned slightly. It was _him_.

"Be careful, ne?"

"Wiiz," he replied without meeting his gaze.

And with that, Ryoma exited the sushi restaurant and began the lonely trek home, confused and frustrated once again.

--

Before Ryoma realized it, Sunday had come and gone and it was back to school again the following day. He ended up spending most of his weekend trying to devise a way to get over his falling in love with his sempai. He though of several distractions or new hobbies to take up but tennis was the only thing that he knew in his life. That and maybe having eating competitions with Momo-sempai.

Now that the national championships were done, tennis practices were sparse. Most of the time will be spent just training and conditioning. There were some tournaments to participate in but nothing major. The sempais were made to work with the freshman to help them get better with their skills as well as improve their chances of becoming Regulars next year when Seigaku's championship team loses six of its regular rotating starters.

He wondered once again how he managed to fall in love in such a short time. Up until recently, he always thought that love was such a fickle thing. You don't go falling in love when you're just twelve years old. It's almost unheard of, he thought. Ryoma tried to convince himself that it was just some inconvenient infatuation. Maybe he became infatuated because of the challenge his sempai represented. A challenge that kept taunting him, it seemed.

That had to be it.

Nevertheless, Ryoma didn't want to admit it, but he was going to miss him once he graduates from junior high.

'Nande? Why did I have to start liking him in the first place?' he thought to himself as he lightly tapped his pen on his desk.

The dreary voice of their English teacher droned on without giving him any hint of a response.

"Psst. Echizen!" Horio whispered roughly.

Ryoma tilted his head. "What?"

"Sensei's calling you to translate something!" Horio quickly mumbled.

"Echizen!" the sensei's voice finally registered.

"Ah…Hai?"

"Come up to the board and translate several phrases."

Ryoma sighed as he got up and slowly made his way to the board. "Hai…"

--

_Several weeks later…_

"Echizen! Wait up!" Momoshiro ran after the freshman who seemed to have suddenly picked up his walking pace. "Oi! Mate!"

Ryoma stopped abruptly in his tracks which almost caused Momoshiro to crash into him. "Hora! Are you crazy? Why'd you suddenly stop?!"

"Hnn, you told me to wait, didn't you?" Ryoma said impatiently.

"Che! You didn't have to stop in the middle of the sidewalk all of a sudden!" Momoshiro grumbled. "Anyway, the whole team's going to have another huge party coming soon. This time it will be with the whole Tennis Club. You're coming whether you like it or not."

"Hnn, was this what you all were discussing the other day while I went ahead and changed in the locker?" Ryoma asked with passing interest.

Momoshiro shifted a bit nervously and laughed. "Ma! Of course it was! We just forgot to call you back as we were talking about it."

"…Do I have to go too?"

"Of course you do! You're part of the team and this is team activity!"

Ryoma fumed. "Betsuni. Just don't sit next to me. You always try to take my sushi."

Momoshiro patted the freshman and laughed. "Haha, of course of course. I'll just steall Mamushi's sushi. Now c'mon. Let's go have a burger. That talk about sushi has made me hungry."

Ryoma shrugged and followed after his sempai, suspicion hanging over his head. "Fine, you treat."

"Bah. You cheapskate. Just don't order too many burgers."

They walked in silence side by side for several minutes. Finally, Ryoma spoke up again.

"Ne, Momo-sempai…?"

"Nani?

Ryoma took a deep breath and asked," Have…have you ever fallen in love?"

"Huh?" Momoshiro reddened slightly. "Eh, I…I don't know…I like…some girls but…I don't think I'v—"

"So you like Ann-san?"

Momoshiro's eyes bugged. "B-b-b-aka! Why would you say…I mean, I'm not referring to her! She's nice and pretty cute, but but bu—"

"Hnn," said Ryoma with an amused smile. "She seems like she does like you."

The taller boy froze. "She does? I mean, what? No, that's not it! I don't love her! I'm still too young, I mean, Kamio's always hag—"

"So you do like her at the very least."

"I…No…I mean…I…" Momoshiro fumbled and then let out a resigned sigh. "…Don't tell anyone else."

Ryoma chuckled. "Six burgers and you've got a deal."

Momoshiro gave him a deathly stare. "Blackmailer."

"Tough."

"Fine."

The pair resumed their walk toward the restaurant once more when Ryoma spoke up again. "So…how can you tell? I mean…Did you just like her all of a sudden?"

Momoshiro stopped and thought for a bit. "How can I tell? What do you…Wait a minute!!"

Ryoma felt a bit embarrassed as his senior started to realize where the discussion was headed. He hastened his pace to the burger shop while regretting his choice to ask Momo-sempai a seemingly stupid question.

Momoshiro ran to catch up to the freshman. "Mate, mate! What do you mean, Echizen? Are you…You mean…you like…or wait…you lov—"

"Iie…I mean…no…I'm just curious. I'm not in love!" Ryoma said in defiance. "It's not me!"

Momoshiro cocked an eyebrow. "But…" a smirk formed on his face. "So this must be why you were asking. You like someone!" he proudly proclaimed a little too loudly in the middle of the sidewalk.

"Hontou?!?! Ochibi-kun likes someone?" Kikumaru's playful voice suddenly came out of nowhere. He appeared without warning between Momoshiro and Ryoma. Oishi wasn't too far behind either.

Ryoma's eyes widened. "Iie, iyada! I…I don't! Really!"

Whatever hope of help Ryoma expected from Oishi was quickly dashed as Oishi also seemed interested in Ryoma's love life. "Oh? Our freshman is growing up so quickly! Ne, Echizen…who's the lucky girl? Ryuzaki-sensei's granddaughter?"

"Sakuno, is it?" asked Kikumaru

"No! It's not her…I mean…I'm not in love…I mean, I don't like anyone!!" Ryoma exclaimed. He felt like he was digging himself a grave though with the overly defiant response.

Kikumaru grinned like a cheeshire cat. "Ochibi-kun's all grown up, nya! This calls for a celebration! Let's have some hamburgers!"

"Oh great idea, Kikumaru-sempai!" Momoshiro happily said. "You can treat us again today!"

"No problem, no problem!" Kikumaru draped an arm around Ryoma. "Oishi-kun! Call up Tezuka and the others! Tell them the good news and to meet us at the burger place! This calls for a celebration!"

"Yosh!" said Oishi as he took his cell phone out and started dialing.

Ryoma paled and tried to think of an excuse to get out of this so-called celebration. Unfortunately it was too late. They were already in front of burger place. And Oishi has successfully contacted the rest of the regulars who have all agreed to meet up with them. It seems that Fuji was already around the area and Tezuka happened to be with him as well.

Ryoma cringed.

He never wanted to crawl under a rock and die more in his life.

-To Be Continued


	2. Love 1, Ryoma 1

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Prince of Tennis.

**Author's Note:** Here's the revised/edited chapter 2. Thanks for the continued patronage!

A Love Game: Chapter 2 – Love 1, Ryoma 1

Ryoma slipped his shoes on and discretely stepped outside of Crazy Burger's Restaurant. It had been quite an embarrassing night for him as he was subjected to countless teasing and interrogation by his seniors. Things only got worse when he adamantly refused to reveal who his 'love' was. A majority of them however believed that it was Ryuzaki Sakuno.

Ryoma wished that were the case. If it were so, things would be so much simpler. He knew though that 'simple' wasn't meant to be in his life. Everything had to be complicated. The only simple thing he had in his life really was tennis. Tennis is tennis, he remembered saying one time.

Love, on the other hand, involved so much complexity. It especially didn't help that the object of his love was one of his sempais. Worse, _he_ was someone Ryoma shouldn't be in love with in the first place.

He leaned back against the wall and looked up in star-studded sky. He wondered if there was anyone out there who could help him in his plight. This wasn't like tennis where he could afford to lose several points or games in order to break his opponent and make a comeback. Love's possibly a hundred times more complex than that.

The foremost difficulty was that you really couldn't control who you fall in love with.

Second, reciprocation isn't guaranteed.

Third, it's a hell of a distraction in tennis.

Fourth, he's too young to be thinking about it.

Fifth, his father is Echizen Nanjiroh, pervert to the max.

The door behind Ryoma suddenly slid open and out popped Momoshiro's head. "Oi! So this is where you went! Get back in here! They're all looking for you."

Ryoma knew what was waiting for him inside. "No thanks. I've had about enough of those stupid questions." He moved to walk away from the restaurant. "I'm going home."

He didn't get very far unfortunately. Momoshiro grabbed him and dragged him back inside the restaurant. "Like hell you aren't! You're coming back inside! The night's still early!"

"Momo-sempai!" Ryoma protested and struggled but it was to no avail.

"Hora! I found him! He tried to sneak away!" Momoshiro proudly proclaimed as he dragged the irritated freshman back to the tables.

"Good job, Momo! Maa, Echizen…You didn't think you'd get away did you?" Oishi laughed.

Ryoma growled his displeasure at being manhandled. "Momo-sempai, I'll remember this the next time I face you on the tennis court."

"Maa, bring it on then, you little punk!" Momoshiro laughed. "Oh…wait…what if we beat it out of you then?"

"Momoshiro!" Tezuka's sullen voice boomed.

"Ie, ie. Not that kind of beating! I mean…what if we each play a match against Echizen?" Momoshiro proposed. "Whoever wins gets to find out who she is!"

"She? I bet you it's Ryuzaki-sensei's granddaughter!" Kikumaru piped in.

"You do realize, Momo-chan sempai, in order for that to happen, I need to agree to play all of you," said Ryoma without acknowledging or refuting Kikumaru's claim.. "And I refuse to do that even though I know I can beat all of you."

"Ooooh? Aren't we a bit too confident, Ochibi-kun?"

Ryoma shrugged. "Doesn't matter." He silently hoped that the topic of tennis would steer the conversation away from his love life.

The night wore on and soon it was time for them to leave. Kikumaru was the first to leave as one of his older sisters came by and picked him up. Oishi followed as he hitched a ride back with him. Kaidoh left next, saying that he had to wake up early the next day for training. Inui left after him after rambling on about trying out a new recipe for the newest version of his juice and analyzing Echizen's data with regards to his love life.

Kawamura was starting to clear some tables when Tezuka, Fuji, Momoshiro, and Ryoma all decided that it was time for them to call it a night as well. Ryoma would have left earlier except Momoshiro forced him to stay longer, promising that he would give him a ride back to his home on the elder's bike. Also, part of him wanted to stay longer because of _him_. His foolish heart wanted to be near _him_ just a minute more if possible. He sighed in annoyance.

Tezuka and Fuji exited the restaurant first as Momoshiro made Ryoma wait because he misplaced his bicycle key. After several minutes of looking under tables and chairs, they found the said key and bade Kawamura thanks and good night. As they exited the restaurant, Ryoma was surprised to find the captain and the prodigy not too far ahead of them, seemingly caught in a serious conversation. They didn't seem to realize that Ryoma and Momoshiro were nearby. Ryoma wondered at the topic of their conversation when Momoshiro suddenly grabbed him toward the sempais' direction.

"Hey, wait, I don—"

"Shh! Don't you want to know what they're talking about?" Momoshiro hushed him as he pulled the freshman. "It could be something interesting like the next tournament's lineup! Or maybe Fuji-sempai is plotting something! C'mon!"

"But, but…" Ryoma really wasn't interested in knowing. He was however curious about something else.

"Quit complaining, Echizen. I'm sure you want to know too."

Ryoma finally relented and followed Momoshiro behind a turn not too far away from the captain and the prodigy. It was an adequate hiding place as it was already dark. It was also close enough to the pair that Ryoma and Momoshiro can somewhat hear the conversation between two of Seigaku's aces.

"You need to be serious about this," they heard the captain say.

"Saa, isn't it more fun this way?"

"For you maybe," replied Tezuka, unimpressed. "Leave him alone."

"Jealous, Tezuka?"

Ryoma's eyes shot up. 'Jealous? Who is?' Next to him, Momoshiro seemed to have the same confusion written all over his face. "Ne, Echizen…you don't suppose those two are…together…you know….like _that_—"

"You shouldn't have fun when it's something like this, Fuji," the captain responded. "Let him be."

Crystal-blue eyes opened for the first time that night. "I can't leave him alone if he has his eyes on you."

"Didn't you hear Eiji earlier? It's almost a given that it's Ryuzaki-sensei's granddaughter."

"I'm not convinced. And I think neither are you, Tezuka."

"Stop it, Fuji," warned Tezuka. "Don't do this…don't do anything to him."

By this time, Ryoma has heard enough. He cursed himself for being stupid enough to fall in love, most especially with someone he could never have. He realized then that there was no chance for him since Tezuka-buchou and Fuji-sempai were a couple. He wasn't even going to try to get in between them.

"Mou, this is interesting," Momoshiro whispered. "The captain and Fuji-sempai…I guess I can't say I'm surprised. Ne, Echizen do yo—Echizen?" The tall junior turned and was surprised to find his junior gone. He straightened up and looked around. He scratched his head and wondered why he suddenly left. "Echizen?" Momoshiro grabbed his bike and rode toward the direction he thought that the freshman might have disappeared to.

--

Tezuka's eyes flickered toward the dark corner turn not too far away from where he and Fuji stood, thinking he heard some noise. At that same moment, a mild gust of wind blew by, rustling some leaves about, and a cat came from the darkened area. He assumed it was the cat that caused the noise earlier and turned his attention back to Fuji.

"He's interesting," said the shorter senior.

"It's too early for him to be dealing with things like this," said Tezuka in return. "And, this is just all in passing for you. Only because he has your interest at the moment. What happens when he's no longer interesting, Fuji?"

"Would you believe me if I said I was serious about him?"

Tezuka blinked. "Fuji, you…"

"Maa, well I'll be leaving Seigaku soon," Fuji smiled, "It won't be so bad if I stake my claim now, would it?"

"…"

"Don't worry yourself too much, Tezuka," Fuji gently replied. "I'm starting to think that maybe you're interested in him too."

Tezuka regarded the prodigy's blue eyes and sighed. "Our interests in him greatly differ in nature."

A wry smile formed on the prodigy's lips. "Hm, I have no choice but to believe you, ne?"

"Hmh."

--

Ryoma cursed as he almost tripped again for the umpteenth time as he ran home. Tonight had to be one of the most miserable nights of his life. He cursed himself for being naïve in hoping that maybe, just maybe Fuji-sempai would be interested in him as well.

"What was I thinking?"

He finally reached home, thankful that Momo-sempai never caught up to him. He immediately took his shoes off and proceeded to go upstairs, all he while hoping that he won't run into his father. He felt so miserable and depressed at the moment that he needed to be alone to think things over. That and make a long list of reasons why falling in love is stupid.

He reached his room without encountering his idiot of a father and immediately locked the door behind him. He sighed and leaned back against the door, feeling weak all of a sudden. He slid down the door and sat down at the floor, only to be pounced on by Karupin.

Ryoma stroked his feline companion's head. "Ne, Karupin…Do cats fall in love too?"

The cat only mewed its pleasure at being stroked in response.

"I'm only twelve. Why should I have to worry about something like this? And with Fuji-sempai of all people too. He's a boy, he's sadistic, he's scary, and he eats the weirdest things."

The cat nudged its head against his warm hand.

"Who eats wasabi sushi? Really now?"

Ryoma stood up, picked up his cat and moved to sit on his bed. He glanced to his desk where a photo of the tennis team stood framed. It was the photo they took together after winning the National Championships. Fuji-sempai stood next to him and had his arm draped across Ryoma's shoulders, smiling as usual. Ryoma frowned as he grabbed the photo and looked at it more closely. He cursed as he realized that he had a slight blush on his face when the photo was taken.

Ryoma glanced the calendar on his desk. It won't be long before the seniors graduate from Seishun Gakuen. Tennis was all but over for them, which meant lesser time spent with the other Regulars, most especially with the graduating seniors.

Or at least he hoped so. He wondered how he'd be able to bear being around Tezuka-buchou and Fuji-sempai after finding out about them. Knowing Tezuka-buchou, he'd want several more matches with Ryoma just to test his progression. Then there's that unfinished match between him and Fuji-sempai as well.

He gritted his teeth and made up his mind. He would get over this foolish thing called love if that was the last thing he did. He would get over Fuji-sempai with the same attitude he used when his opponents on the tennis court seemed so impossible to beat.

Echizen Ryoma will break 'love' and any other notions as such just as he did to every singe one of his opponents.

"Even if it's the last thing I do."

- To Be Continued


	3. Love 2, Ryoma 1

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Prince of Tennis.

**Author's Note:** Here's the revised/edited chapter 3. Thanks for the continued patronage!

**A Love Game: Chapter 3 – Love 2, Ryoma 1**

_One week later…_

"Oi Ryoma! Hurry up! Your sempai's outside waiting for you!" Nanjiroh Echizen belted out.

"I'm coming already!" Ryoma yelled back as he ran down the stairs. "I'm skipping breakfast today!" He slid his shoes on, grabbed his tennis bag, and was out of the house a second later.

"Yo Echizen! Hurry up or I'll be late for my exam!" Momoshiro called.

"Okay, okay!" Ryoma climbed up behind his senior on his bike and they were soon off towards school.

"Good thing there's no club practice this morning," Momoshiro commented as he pedaled. "I slept late studying for my exams."

"Hnn," said Ryoma, "you mean _trying_ to study, right?"

"Do you want to talk to school the rest of the way?" the junior shot back. "I can drop you off at the corner if you like."

Ryoma smirked. "Good luck on your test, Momo-sempai."

"Hey, Echizen," said Momoshiro after several minutes of silence. "Do you think the others on the team know about Tezuka-buchou and Fuji-sempai?"

Ryoma's eyes narrowed slightly and he unconsciously gripped Momoshiro's shoulders tighter. "Eh…Don't know. Who cares, right? It…it shouldn't be a surprise. Those two…"

"Oh? You might be right about that," said Momoshiro. "Now that I think about it, it might be kind of expected."

"It is? Why do you think so?" Ryoma asked before he could stop himself.

Momoshiro pressed on the brakes slightly as they neared an intersection. He looked both ways before crossing the busy street. "Maybe it's…well I'm not really sure. Maybe because Fuji-sempai can get under Tezuka-buchou's skin?"

Ryoma quirked his lips at the response. "I think Fuji-sempai does that to everyone."

"You're right about that," Momoshiro laughed. "To tell you the truth, he scares me more than Inui-sempai. I'd much rather drink a gallon of that special juice than become victimized by Fuji-sempai."

The freshman snickered. "I…I might take my chances on Fuji-sempai rather than on Inui-sempai's juice. At least I'll know I'll still be alive."

"True, but you'll be scarred for life."

"Yeah, maybe," Ryoma said in suddenly serious tone. The pair stopped at another intersection. "Momo-sempai, have you ever had a serious match with Fuji-sempai?"

The junior thought for a moment and then shook his head. "I've probably had a more serious match with Tezuka-buchou. What's it like against Fuji-sempai when he's serious?"

Ryoma had a thought look on his face. "It…it was exhilarating and annoying at the same time."

"Annoying, huh?" said Momoshiro. "That's just like you."

"Heh," Ryoma made a sound. "I can definitely tell you that he's right up there with buchou."

"You're probably right about that," Momoshiro commented as he steered his bicycle inside school grounds. "I think you can pull off a win from him though. Everybody jumped on Fuji-sempai's bandwagon when you both first played. But you held your ground well. Who knows how that would have ended if you continued?"

"Who knows." Ryoma stepped down from the bicycle and headed off towards the school building. "Thanks for the ride, sempai."

"Hey Echizen!" Momoshiro exclaimed at the freshman's retreating form. "Prove it to the others this afternoon during practice!"

Ryoma adjusted his tennis bag on his shoulder. "We'll see."

Several feet away, leaning against a tree, Fuji Syusuke watched the exchange between Ryoma and Momoshiro, and just smiled.

* * *

"Echizen."

Ryoma didn't have to look up from his table to know who stood in front of him. He poked his Jell-O again and fought hard to suppress a blush that threatened to overcome his face. "Hm?"

"Is this seat taken?"

"Nope."

"May I?"

"Whatever you like."

Fuji set his tray down and sat directly in front of Ryoma. He smirked as he watched the freshman poke at his gelatin dessert as if it was the most interesting activity at the moment. "Hey, why are you having lunch by yourself?"

Ryoma looked toward the side and motioned with his head. "I'm not. Momo-sempai and Kikumaru-sempai are trying to wrestle some curry and melon bread from over there."

"Ah, I see."

Ryoma picked off a piece of the dessert and lazily put it in his mouth. "What are you doing here, Fuji-sempai?"

Fuji snapped his chopsticks apart and opened his lunch box, showing off several sushi rolls, a pork cutlet, and some seaweed salad. "I'm having lunch, of course."

"Where is Tezuka-buchou?"

"I don't know. Do you need to see him about something?" asked Fuji.

Ryoma's grip on the spoon tightened slightly. "Ah, no. I was just wondering."

Fuji eyed him curiously. "Want some wasabi sushi?"

Ryoma eyed the sushi rolls and shook his head. "Ah, no thanks. I'm all done with lunch anyway." He moved to stand up but was surprised to find out that Fuji-sempai raised a leg to secure the chair. Ryoma realized that he couldn't swivel sideways to get up. "Er, Fuji-sempai…"

"Stay." Fuji smiled at him. "Lunch period is far from over and I would like the company."

"Eh, but Momo-sempai and Kikumaru-sempai will be back soon," Ryoma mumbled out.

The prodigy looked to the side. "I very much doubt that they will be come back anytime soon."

Ryoma followed the sempai's gaze and frowned. His sempais were now caught up in an all-out battle for the last curry-friend bread. "No way…"

"Saa. So stay," remarked Fuji. "Keep me company."

"But I…."

Fuji smiled.

Ryoma shivered.

"Stay."

Resigned, Ryoma leaned back towards the table and found himself a bit unnerved by that smile directed at him. "Fine, whatever."

Silence.

"So, Echizen…" Fuji spoke up, "how do you feel about continuing our match?"

"…"

"Hm?"

"…I don't want to," Ryoma managed. "I mean…at least not anytime soon."

Fuji paused from putting another sushi roll in his mouth. "Why not?"

"No reason in particular," said Ryoma in response.

"Not even if I play you seriously?" Fuji offered.

Ryoma looked up and met his sempai's look. "You rarely do."

"Hm, is that a fact?" Fuji saw the younger tennis player clench his jaw but kept his gaze.

"If you're serious, I'll look forward to a game then," edged Ryoma.

"I'm quite serious about you, Ryoma," replied Fuji in a serious tone.

Ryoma was a bit taken back with the sincerity of the response and blushed at the connation that his heart suggested. He wasn't sure how to respond to it and was quite relieved that his two earlier absent sempais finally made it back to the lunch table with their bread.

"Fuji! Nya! Nice of you to join us for lunch!" Kikumaru bounced back to his seat next to Ryoma. "Want some bread?"

Fuji smiled but maintained his stare on Echizen. "No thanks. I've got enough here."

"What about you, ochibi?" asked Kikumaru.

"No thanks. I'm almost done anyway," said Ryoma looking down intensely at the Jell-O. He refused to meet the prodigy's intense eyes on him.

"Ah well, more for me then."

"So, Fuji-sempai," said Momoshiro, "Ryoma and I were talking this morning about your unfinished match."

"Oh?"

"Momo-sempai, you don' hav—"

"So when do you think you and Echizen will finish that match?"

"Saa. It's up to Echizen." Fuji put another wasabi sushi roll in his mouth. "Soon, maybe?"

"Eh…" Ryoma started, "whenever you want to, Fuji-sempai." Seeing as he had no way out of this without looking like he was running away or backing down, he relented. "…Just be serious."

Fuji's eyes opened and bored into Ryoma's. "I've never been more serious in my life."

Kikumaru blinked at Fuji's expression. He furrowed his eyes in thought as he realized that Fuji was indeed sincere about playing Echizen in a serious match. He wondered what the freshman has done to get Fuji in this manner. Even he's never faced a serious Fuji on the tennis court before. At least not by choice.

"All right!" Momoshiro exclaimed, missing Fuji's expression altogether. "It's just like what we talked about this morning, Echizen. My money's on you so you better give Fuji-sempai a game he'll never forget."

Fuji flashed another smile. "Oh, I'm sure it will be interesting."

Ryoma, unnerved, tried once again to get up from his seat, only to find that he was still held captive by the blue-eyed prodigy. Warily, he eyed the recent object of his affection (he's still astounded by that) and tried his best to give him a challenging stare. "I'll be looking forward to it then."

Fuji suddenly relaxed and released his hold on Ryoma's seat. "Saa. See you on the court then after school, freshman."

"See you then." Ryoma gathered up his tray and his garbage, stood up, and left without looking back.

* * *

"Hey! Fuji! Wait!" Kikumaru bounded over to his classmate and close friend. When he finally caught up to the prodigy, he gave him an inquiring look. "What's up with the serious tone earlier? I rarely see that from you. I know that Echizen's an interesting player but…he didn't do anything to…you know…get on your bad side, right?"

The brown-haired senior chuckled. "No, no. He didn't do anything. I just…I'm just serious about him…about the game."

"Well, if you say so," Kikumaru said but he wasn't convinced. "Anyway, I was talking to Momo earlier and he told me about you…and Tezuka."

Fuji blinked. "Oh? What about me and Tezuka?"

"Eh…that he overheard you and him talking the other night…about…something about you and then Tezuka being jealous because of someone else that you…were seeing?" Kikumaru rumbled out.

The prodigy broke out in a smile. "That's very interesting, Eiji."

"So…what is it then?" Kikumaru started again. "You and Tezuka…are you…both….like what?"

Fuji collected himself and patted Kikumaru's shoulder. "Saa…Who knows, right?"

"Fuji! Gah! Tell me! We've been friends for a long time now!"

"Hm? And spoil my fun?"

"Bah! I'll assume it's true then," Kikumaru made a pout-like face.

Fuji just shrugged and started walking ahead of his red-headed friend. Quietly, he wondered who else might be thinking that there was something going on between him and Tezuka. It wasn't a boring notion—Fuji and Tezuka together—but Fuji Syusuke was after someone else more interesting than Seigaku's captain.

* * *

Echizen Ryoma sneezed for the third time in class as he finishing up his Math exam. Annoyed, he rubbed his nose and completed the final problem on the test.

'Hn, I wonder who could be talking about me right now.'

Ryoma got up from his seat and grabbed his bag. He ignored the jealous stares several of his classmates gave him at having finished the exam first in the class. He went straight to the Tennis Club locker room and changed to get ready for practice and the scheduled match between him and Fuji-sempai. He wondered if the prodigy was still serious about it as he declared at lunch time earlier.

"Echizen."

Ryoma flinched. "Ah, yeah sempai?" He didn't dare turn around because he felt that stupid blush creeping up on his face again.

Fuji smiled as he realized he surprised the freshman. "Ready for our match?"

"Yeah." Ryoma felt stupid because he couldn't think of anything else to tell the prodigy who has occupied his mind quite a bit as of late.

Fuji walked just behind Ryoma and leaned down by his ear. "I'm looking forward to it."

Ryoma shuddered and felt himself turning redder by the second. He quickly finished changing and grabbed his tennis bag, almost running to exit the locker room. "I…I'll see you outside on the courts then, sempai."

Fuji suppressed the laughter that threatened to escape from him. "Ja." After the freshman left, he couldn't help but be amused at the reactions that the younger one tried to hide from him. Maybe going after Echizen wouldn't be so hard after all, he thought to himself. Besides, he rather liked seeing Echizen blush especially when he knew he caused it.

Fuji finally finished changing, picked up his tennis equipment, and headed off to the tennis court without wasting another second. He had an interesting date to attend to after all.

To be continued


	4. Love 2, Ryoma 2

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Prince of Tennis, nor am I making any money from writing this.

**Author's Note:** Here is the revised version of chapter 4. Thanks for the reviews submitted before. I always welcome them.

**A Love Game: Chapter 3 – Love 2, Ryoma 2**

Ryoma frowned at the clouds that threatened to block out the bright sun that late afternoon. He observed that it was a bit humid that day and wondered if it might rain again. He hoped not since he had an interesting match to play that day.

Echizen versus Fuji.

He was a bit surprised at the encouragement he received from the other club members when news of it broke out. It seemed that his freshman peers wanted to know how he would do in an all-out match against the tennis prodigy. Ryoma was very curious himself, disregarding the annoying feelings that hounded him recently whenever he entertained thoughts of the prodigy.

"Echizen."

Ryoma stopped in mid-stride and turned to face the person who called him. "Captain?" He hesitated at first but eventually walked towards Tezuka when beckoned. "Yeah?"

"Are you ready"

Ryoma regarded his tall captain, knowing that he referred to the match. "I suppose. What do you think?"

Tezuka gave the young tennis player a quick glance. "No one on this team has played a serious Fuji. I know him. And from the last serious match you had with him, I'm sure you glimpsed it."

"Hnn."

Echizen," Tezuka continued, "Fuji's capabilities… They're not something that can be gauged. Even now, it's very difficult to determine his actual skill level. I'm sure you've heard that even Inui couldn't get real data on him."

Ryoma turned and looked at the tennis courts. "Is this meant to make me worry?"

Tezuka ignored the question. "That match you played against him… I'm sure you know what I'm talking about."

Ryoma was slightly confused. He couldn't really grasp what his captain, if anything, was trying to tell him. Was he telling him to back off from the match, he wondered. Or was this Tezuka's way of showing his possessiveness toward the prodigy? Ryoma raised his hand to lower his cap over his eyes. "Captain, are yo—"

"Don't lose," Tezuka cut him off. "He will coax out your true potential so make sure that you don't lose."

Surprised, Ryoma could only nod briefly. "Um, Captain… When will I get to play against you again?" He looked up at the darkening sky.

Tezuka followed the freshman's gaze. "Concentrate on the match that's in front of you right now. There will be plenty of time to think about our rematch in the future."

"Echizen! Tezuka!" Oishi called out from the tennis courts. "C'mon! We should start practice soon or the rain will get us!"

Ryoma tipped his cap and started walking toward the tennis courts, followed by a stoic Tezuka. "Captain…"

"Hm?"

"Whatever the outcome of my match against Fuji-sempai may be," Ryoma said with a calm voice, "I can at the very least say that won't be a Love game."

"I never expected it to be."

Before entering the tennis courts, Echizen felt the captain's hand on his shoulder. He turned to face him with an inquiring look.

"Do you want to play some warm up matches first?"

Ryoma blinked. "Sure. With you?"

"No," replied Tezuka. "At least not yet. Play a match against Momoshiro first. Then we'll take it from there."

"Okay."

* * *

As soon as he exited the locker room, Fuji immediately looked for the freshman Regular. A frown creased his face when he saw Echizen standing by the tennis courts with Tezuka's hand on his left shoulder. 'Interesting…'

He made his way toward the pair but was intercepted by a pounce courtesy of an energetic Kikumaru Eiji.

"Fujiko! Let's have a practice match!"

Fuji smiled. A warm-up match might be nice. "Sure, Eiji. One-set match?"

"Hoi-hoi!" Kikumaru grinned. "Of course!"

Twenty minutes later, a once energetic Kikumaru walked off the court, extremely exhausted. "Ne, Fujiko-nya! What's with you today? You played way to seriously against me!"

A smirk formed on the prodigy's lips. "Ah, sorry. Just felt a little uptight."

"Mou! That's not fair!" Kikumaru protested. "You sealed my acrobatic play!"

"Saa, saa. Sorry about that." Fuji looked around. "Hey, have you seen Echizen?"

The red-headed tennis player blinked. "Ochibi? He's having a match with Taka-san right now. He played Momo-chan earlier and just killed him on the court. Kaidoh's up next, I think."

"Oh? We were supposed to have a match today." Fuji reminded him.

Oishi appeared next to Eiji. "Tezuka's menu for Echizen today, I suppose. Maybe he didn't know about you wanting to play against Echizen today, Fuji."

Once closed eyes opened. "Maybe." But Fuji really doubted it.

Oishi shrugged. "I'm not sure what Tezuka's thinking but I'm sure it's all in preparation for tournament play. He probably wants to help Echizen develop his play while he's still around. After all, we won't be around here for much longer."

Fuji crossed his arms over his chest and thought to himself. 'Seigaku's Pillar of Support, is it?'

Kikumaru observed his friend carefully. "Nya, Fujiko…what's wrong? You don't look very happy."

A smile came back to the prodigy's face. "Ah, nothing." He reached for his tennis racket. "Say, Oishi…do you want to play a match with me?"

"Eh? What? Now you mean?

"NYA! You better watch out, Oishi! Fuji's playing seriously today!"

"He is? I mean…wait…what?"

Fuji rubbed his chin. "Hey Eiji, don't make it sound like it's a bad thing. In fact, I'll even play both of you as doubles if it makes you feel any better?"

Kikumaru examined him. "Okay!" He grabbed Oishi enthusiastically and pulled him to the tennis courts. "Let's go then! I want to try out this new formation I saw on TV. C'mon Oish! Let's make Fujiko sweat! He won't win even if he plays seriously against the Golden Pair!"

Fuji smirked and followed after the pair onto the court. Just before Oishi served, he chanced a glance towards the other court where Echizen and Taka-san were playing. His eyes narrowed sharply as he muttered to himself, "Mada mada da ne."

"Game and match! Fuji, Six games to Two!"

Kikumaru and Oishi stood stunned on their side of the court. Fuji went all out against them. "Um, Eiji… Is something bothering Fuji? He seemed possessed on the tennis court today."

Kikumaru panted heavily. "Nya, he's been like that since practice started. Won't tell me why he seems upset. It's almost like someone took his candy away."

Oishi, with a concerned look on his face, took a few steps headed toward the prodigy. "Maybe I'll talk to him." Before he could take another step, a tennis ball hit him on the back of his head. "Ow!"

Kikumaru lowered his hand after he threw the ball. "Oishi, he's in one of _those_ moods. Don't bother because if you get in his way, he will come after you. No one wants to be in Fuji's way when he gets like this."

Oishi rubbed the back of his head. "I see. Do you think Tezuka might know what's bothering him?"

"That's the thing. I suspect it's got something to do with Tezuka and Ochibi. Momo mentioned something like maybe Tezuka and Fujiko were seeing each other. But after I asked Fuji, it sounded like there was a love triangle involving Ochibi," Kikumaru said thoughtfully.

Oishi paled. "That could be bad, right?"

The acrobatic player shrugged. "Nya, maybe. But at the same time, it's very interesting, don't you think?"

* * *

Ryoma leapt up high in the air, twisted his body awkwardly, and them slammed down a Cyclone Smash toward Taka-san's court. Taka-san made a reach for the high-velocity ball but could only swing at air as he missed it by a racket's length.

"Ara, ara. You're getting so much stronger now, Echizen-kun," said Taka-san. You're making me run around with so many of these power shots. I can't get setup for my _Hadoukyou_."

Ryoma breathed heavily as he rested his hands on his knees. "Ah… You're making me work so hard for it, Kawamura-sempai."

Taka-san walked on over by the freshman and patted him on his back. "That's okay, isn't it?"

The black-haired youth smiled. "Yeah." He turned around to the other tennis court and found himself caught in the eyes of the blue-eyed prodigy. Ryoma flinched slightly but held his gaze. He wondered what he thought now that Tezuka-buchou cancelled their scheduled match.

At first Ryoma thought that maybe Tezuka-buchou didn't want him around Fuji-sempai. But now he wasn't so sure as his captain encouraged him to win against the prodigy. He got confused now that he thought about it more.

"Echizen."

He broke off his gaze from the fair-haired senior. "Yes, captain?"

"Kaidoh's waiting for you in the next match. After that, see me again."

"All right."

* * *

Tezuka was watching Kaidoh's and Echizen's match when he felt an unhappy presence approach his side. "Fuji."

"Hey, Tezuka," Fuji said in a callous voice, "why'd you do that?"

Tezuka kept his eyes trained on the court. "Why did I do what?"

"You're keeping him away from me."

The captain looked briefly at Fuji. "You must be imagining things."

"Hm, Maybe I am. You really wou'dnt want to get in my way now, would you, Tezuka?" Fuji's voice lowered a bit. "I thought you weren't interested in him that way."

Tezuka didn't reply for several minutes. When he finally spoke, his voice had an edge in it. "This isn't a game, Fuji."

"Saa."

* * *

Ryoma took gulps and gulps of water from the fountain. The match with Kaidoh-sempai really took a lot out of him. His senior Snaked him at every opportunity, forcing Ryoma to hit the ball at very sharp angles on the tennis court.

It irritated Ryoma quite a bit because the upcoming game was more appealing to him. No offense to Kaidoh-sempai, of course. Unfortunately for him, Kaidoh-sempai really made it a difficult one for him. He won but his legs felt really wobbly. Now, he was faced with having to play against Tezuka-bucho with jelly-like legs and almost thoroughly exhausted endurance.

"Echizen…"

Ryoma froze. 'Damn. I almost forgot about him.'

"It seems that we can't find each other on the court today," a humorless voice said.

Ryoma picked up his cap and tried to make his way toward the tennis court. "Ah well." Nerves of steel, he reminded himself.

Arms on either sides of him suddenly trapped him against the water fountains. "Fuji-sempai?"

"You sound like you couldn't care less. Maa, even though you seemed excited about this afternoon, you ditched me to play a match with others instead."

The freshman flinched, an odd mixture of fear and excitement coursing through him. "Wasn't my call. Tezuka-bucho—"

"Echizen." Speak of the devil. "Fuji, he's going to be late for his match."

Fuji smiled at his junior before removing his arms. "Hmm, I was just talking to him about our match that was supposed to happen today, Tezuka."

Tezuka, with arms crossed over his chest, stood unmoved. "You can talk to him later. Echizen and I have a match to play right now."

Echizen was never more relieved to follow after his captain. He wished though that he had a chance to wash up again because Fuji-sempai's actions caused an embarrassing blush to creep up his face. His sempai's face got a tad too close to his! Though he felt quite exhausted earlier, Ryoma suddenly felt very vigorous and enthused about his upcoming match with his captain.

"Echizen"

Ryoma heard the gentle call from behind him. He turned briefly to find the blue-eyed prodigy smiling at him. "Hm?"

"I'll be watching."

TBC


End file.
